A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Four federal agencies--the Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service in the Department of the Interior--are responsible for managing federal lands, enforcing federal laws governing the lands and their resources, and ensuring visitor safety. Illegal activities occurring on these lands have raised concerns that the four agencies are becoming less able to protect our natural and cultural resources and ensure public safety. GAO examined (1) the types of illegal activities occurring on federal lands and the effects of those activities on natural and cultural resources, the public, and agency employees; (2) how the agencies have used their law enforcement resources to respond to these illegal activities; and (3) how the agencies determine their law enforcement resource needs and distribute these resources. GAO reviewed agency documents, interviewed agency officials, and visited or contacted 26 selected agency units."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 directed the Department of Defense (DOD) to submit a report to congressional defense committees on improvements to the governance and execution of its health information management and information technology (IT) programs to support medical care within the military health system. DOD submitted its report to the appropriate House and Senate committees in June 2010. The act also directed GAO to assess the report and DOD's plan of action to achieve its goals and mitigate risks in the management and execution of health information management and IT programs. Specifically, GAO's objective was to determine whether DOD addressed the reporting requirements specified in the defense authorization act. To do this, GAO reviewed the report submitted by DOD, and analyzed it against the reporting requirements, prior GAO work examining DOD's health IT issues, DOD guidance, and industry best practices."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Congress created the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) to help reduce the number of foreclosed and abandoned properties and restore depressed local housing markets. The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) authorized the program's first round (NSP 1), providing $3.92 billion in grant funds to states and local governments. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) administers the program. HERA mandated that GAO report on whether grantees were using NSP 1 funds in accordance with the act's criteria. For this mandate, GAO examined (1) grantees' progress and challenges in meeting NSP 1 obligation and income-targeting requirements, (2) HUD's actions to mitigate program risks and ensure grantees' compliance with key NSP 1 requirements, and (3) HUD's efforts to collect program data and assess program performance. To address these objectives, GAO analyzed HUD data and the information system used for NSP 1; interviewed HUD officials and representatives of NSP 1 grantees; analyzed HUD's internal control processes; and conducted limited tests of 8 grantees' compliance with key NSP 1 requirements."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In fiscal year 2009, the federal government obligated over $500 billion on government contracts. Some in Congress are concerned that private companies may be awarded federal contracts even though they had been cited for violating federal laws that are meant to ensure that employees receive proper wages, have the right to bargain collectively, and are not subject to work-site hazards. GAO was asked to (1) investigate the extent to which companies that received federal contracts during fiscal year 2009 had been assessed the 50 largest monetary penalties for closed inspections of occupational safety, health, and wage regulations for fiscal years 2005 through 2009, and (2) develop case studies of federal contractors that have been assessed occupational safety, health, wage, and collective bargaining penalties. To perform this work, GAO obtained and analyzed concluded wage and health and safety inspections from the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for fiscal years 2005 to 2009. GAO also obtained labor union organization and bargaining violations from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). To determine the value of contracts awarded to GAO's …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The challenges of securing the U.S.-Canadian border involve the coordination of multiple partners. The results of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) efforts to integrate border security among its components and across federal, state, local, tribal, and Canadian partners are unclear. GAO was asked to address the extent to which DHS has (1) improved coordination with state, local, tribal, and Canadian partners; (2) progressed in addressing past federal coordination challenges; and (3) progressed in securing the northern border and used coordination efforts to address existing vulnerabilities. GAO reviewed interagency agreements, strategies, and operational documents that address DHS's reported northern border vulnerabilities such as terrorism. GAO visited four Border Patrol sectors, selected based on threat, and interviewed officials from federal, state, local, tribal, and Canadian agencies operating within these sectors. While these results cannot be generalized, they provided insights on border security coordination."

This report reviews Argentina's financial crisis, the bond exchanges of 2005 and 2010, ongoing litigation, prospects for a final solution, related U.S. legislation, and broader policy issues. These include lessons on the effectiveness and cost of Argentina's default strategy, the ability to force sovereigns to meet their debt obligations, and ways to avoid future defaults like Argentina's.

This report reviews Argentina's financial crisis, the bond exchanges of 2005 and 2010, ongoing litigation, prospects for a final solution, related U.S. legislation, and broader policy issues. These include lessons on the effectiveness and cost of Argentina's default strategy, the ability to force sovereigns to meet their debt obligations, and ways to avoid future defaults like Argentina's.

This report discusses the past four years of administration proposals to terminate the program to develop the General Electric/Rolls-Royce F136 engine as an alternative to the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine that currently powers the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). These proposals have been continually rejected by Congress. The Obama Administration's FY2011 budget submission against proposes to terminate the program. This report explores both sides of the termination argument.

On May 2, 2010, the Eurozone member states and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced an unprecedented €110 billion (about $145 billion) financial assistance package for Greece. The following week, on May 9, 2010, EU leaders announced that they would make an additional €500 billion (about $636 billion) in financial assistance available to vulnerable European countries, and suggested that the IMF could contribute up to an additional €220 billion to €250 billion (about $280 billion to $318 billion). This report answers frequently asked questions about IMF involvement in the Eurozone debt crisis.

This report discusses the U.S. Navy's efforts in recent years to strengthen its ability to carry out irregular warfare (IW) counterterrorism (CT) activities. Some of the activities and organizations explored in this report are the creation of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC), the Navy's riverine force, the Navy Irregular Warfare Office, and the Global Maritime Partnership. The report also discusses what potential oversight issues the Navy's IW and CT activities pose for Congress, including budget priorities.

This report is divided into two segments. The first section provides the most recent information on the FY2011 continuing resolution. The second segment focuses on the (1) history and recent trends, including the nature, scope, and duration of CRs during the past 35 years; (2) CR types by duration; (3) major substantive legislative provisions included in some CRs; and (4) funding gaps.

The President's FY2011 budget request, released February 1, 2010, included $733.3 billion in new budget authority for national defense. This report discusses and break downs these defense appropriations.

This report discusses the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) that is currently being developed by the Army and the Marine Corps as a successor to the 11 different versions of the High Mobility, Multi-Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) that have been in service since 1985. There are concerns about the affordability of JLTVs and its redundancy with other tactical wheeled vehicles.

This report reviews and discusses President Obama's Open Government Initiative and the Open Government Directive. The report then analyzes both agency response to the OGI and the OGD, and examines whether the OGD's requirements can meet the stated goals of the Administration. The report discusses the three central tenets of the Administration's OGD--transparency, public participation, and collaboration--and analyzes each one individually to determine whether agencies are meeting these requirements and whether the requirements may improve the effectiveness of the federal government.

This report provides background information and presents potential issues, as well as costs, for Congress concerning the U.S. Navy's ship force-structure goals and shipbuilding plans. The planned size of the Navy, the rate of Navy ship procurement, and the prospective affordability of the Navy's shipbuilding plans have been matters of concern for the congressional defense committees for the past several years.

This report seeks to clarify why one group of individuals with disabilities may be eligible for benefits under Veteran's Disability Compensation (VDC), but ineligible for benefits under Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) (and vice versa), through a description and comparison of several distinguishing characteristics of the SSDI and VDC programs. This report concludes with a discussion of the challenges facing the administration of both programs, including processing delays for pending claims and appeals.

This report discusses how U.S. policy towards the multilateral development banks (MDBs) is developed and implemented in the executive branch and the agencies that are involved. It also analyzes the three main sources of congressional influence--legislative authority, the power of the purse, and oversight activities-- on U.S. policy towards the development banks. Finally, it examines the levels of funding Congress has approved for MDBs, budgetary issues and the policy directives that Congress has initiated over the years.

This report discusses the free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the European Union (EU). It looks at various aspects of the South Korea-EU FTA (KOREU FTA) including economic ties, trade strategies, and an overview of the key provisions of the agreement focusing on manufactured goods, agriculture, services, and various other provisions of particular interest to U.S. policymakers and the U.S. business community. The report also gives an analysis of the potential economic impact of the KOREU FTA and potential implications of the agreement for the United States.

This report discusses health savings accounts (HSAs), which are generally used to pay for unreimbursed medical expenses on a tax-advantaged basis. HSAs are tax-advantaged and provide some incentives for people to monitor, and perhaps reduce, their expenditures on health care.

The Congressional Research Service frequently receives inquiries about legislative planning. Legislative and office action plans are often used by congressional offices for almost every significant project, from organizing an extensive conference in the district or state to introducing and guiding legislation. A major action plan requires a firm understanding of the project's goal, a research strategy, and a time line for completing the project. This report presents some of the factors usually considered in preparing an action plan. The information is provided in three sections. The first provides an overview which lays out summary considerations. The second raises questions to consider in preparing an outline for a project. The third details a sample action plan.

This report discusses the current political state of Iran, focusing particularly on the influence of the Taliban and other militant groups and on the leadership of Afghan President Hamid Karzai. This report also discusses the U.S.-Iran relationship and U.S. efforts under the Obama Administration to provide military, reconstructive, and stabilization aid.

The detention of alleged enemy combatants at the U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, together with proposals to transfer some such individuals to the United States for prosecution or continued detention, has been a subject of considerable interest for Congress. Several authorization and appropriations measures enacted during the 111th Congress, and various pending bills, address the disposition and treatment of Guantanamo detainees. This report analyzes relevant provisions in enacted legislation and selected pending bills.

The annual financial report of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation for fiscal year 2010, including statements of assets, revenues, expenditures, and other financial records as well as supplementary notes and schedules.

Annual financial report of the Texas Lottery Commission for fiscal year 2010, providing statements of assets, expenditures, revenues, and other relevant data as well as the report of an independent auditor.